Announcing the Innovative Infrastructure Initiative.
SIP has partnered with leading technologists, investors, policymakers, and other thought leaders to establish the Innovative Infrastructure Initiative (I³), a new consortium that strives to champion and accelerate transformative infrastructure projects that use technology and innovation to meet pressing infrastructure needs.
With new infrastructure policy and invigorated spending on the horizon as the economy emerges from COVID-19, it is imperative that we develop and invest in next-generation infrastructure systems rather than simply pouring money into band-aid solutions that replicate last century’s outdated and crumbling systems.
I³ was established to help achieve that goal and ensure that we make the most of this once-in-a-generation opportunity. By bringing together the unique experiences and perspectives of its diverse set of members, I³ seeks to reimagine how technology can be applied to transform and improve infrastructure for a more resilient, sustainable, and equitable future.
I³ will draw upon a diverse set of mission-aligned partners — including Accelerator for America; the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE); Brick & Mortar Ventures; Cornell Program in Infrastructure Policy (CPIP); Sidewalk Infrastructure Partners (SIP); X, the moonshot factory — and a leading advisory board.
To learn more, visit www.theithree.com.
Read Protocol's coverage of the I³ launch in its newsletter, Source Code.
wide
America’s Infrastructure Graded a C-
The American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) released its 2021 Report Card for America’s Infrastructure, assigning an overall grade of “C-”. While that grade was up from the ASCE’s prior report, the 2021 report found that the long-term infrastructure investment gap continues to grow, rising to $2.59 trillion, meaning we are underspending on infrastructure at a rate of nearly $260 billion per year. In order to raise the national infrastructure grade and close this gap, ASCE calls for bold federal, state, and local leadership, a sustained investment in infrastructure, and a focus on resilience.
What we’re doing
We’re sharing insights on how
to finance the circular economy.
SIP Partner Michael DeLucia will participate in a panel titled Insights Into Financing the Circular Economy, an upcoming event sponsored by Barclays. Circularity is an economic model built on the continuous use and reuse of materials, rather than the traditional “take, make, dispose” approach. There is vast potential to unlock, but doing so will require innovative thinking from entrepreneurs and investors alike.
AMP Robotics launched a new facility to process and sort small volumes of difficult-to-recycle mixed plastics, paper, and metals.
SIP portfolio company AMP Robotics announced a new secondary sortation facility, which uses AI and automation to identify and sort residual waste. Through its Denver-based facility, AMP Robotics hopes to demonstrate the economic viability of processing and aggregating difficult-to-recycle material in low volumes at scale
What we’re reading
The Biden administration is taking
executive actions to fight climate change:
Addressing the climate crisis is likely to require major federal legislation. But the White House has announced a series of executive orders to take immediate action, including a new set in late January that built on his first-day orders. In that second batch, President Biden set climate considerations as an essential element of U.S. foreign and national security policy, established the White House Office of Domestic Climate Policy to oversee a whole-of-government response, and directed the federal government to use its buying power and example to support electric vehicles.
A hot new real-estate perk is
solar-powered batteries:
The New York Times reports that virtual power plants composed of a network of batteries charged by rooftop solar panels is becoming a desirable amenity for home-owners. At one new, 600-unit apartment complex the paper highlighted, each unit includes a battery the size of a hot water heater that together provide 12.6 megawatts of renewable and backup power for the building. Virtual power plants, including one in development by OhmConnect, a SIP portfolio company, can add resilience and capacity to power grids while reducing carbon emission.
Virtual power plants make
energy demand response pay:
And Greentech Media explains how OhmConnect, Inc., a SIP portfolio company and SIP’s partner on the Resi-Station project, will enable its customers to make money by reducing their energy demands during peak use periods. Typically, utilities pay energy customers in advance for a commitment to reduce demand under certain conditions by certain amounts, or else they make advance payments to providers who commit to spin up extra power at moments of need. In a new partnership with East Bay Community Energy, OhmConnect will make a similar arrangement and pass the payments on to its customers depending on how much energy use they’re willing to forego.